Scene Setter
The Wichita State volleyball team (3-6) is scheduled to travel to Nebraska for a pair of matches in the Creighton Bluejay Classic Sept. 19-20, and a showdown at No. 1-ranked Nebraska (7-0) Saturday, Sept. 21, at 3 p.m. WSU is slated to face 15th-ranked Creighton (5-3) Thursday, Sept. 19, at 6:30 p.m. and Wyoming (4-5) Friday, Sept. 20, at 2 p.m. in Omaha, Neb., at the Ryan Athletic Center and D.J. Sokol Arena before trekking to Lincoln to face the Huskers Saturday at the Devaney Sports Center.
 
Quick Hits
• The Shockers enter the week at 3-6 overall after dropping three contests in the Shocker Volleyball Classic Presented by Ashley HomeStore Sept. 12-14 in Wichita. WSU fell to No. 13 BYU, 3-1, VCU, 3-0, and No. 3 Texas, 3-0.
• After this weekend, Wichita State will have faced five AVCA top-15 teams (No. 1 Nebraska, No. 3 Texas, No. 4 Penn State, No. 12 BYU, No. 15 Creighton).
• Through nine matches, sophomore outside hitter Megan Taflinger leads the Shockers offensively, averaging 2.59 kills per set. Overall, the Leona Valley, Calif., native has 88 kills on 273 attempts with 32 errors for a .205 attack percentage. Junior setter McKayla Wuensch has a team-high nine aces, respectively
• Wuensch is averaging a team-best 4.88 assists per set, while senior libero/DS Kara Bown is averaging a team-high 2.83 digs per set. Junior middle blocker Emma Wright leads Wichita State in blocking with seven block solos and 22 block assists.
• Through nine matches, the Shockers are averaging 10.9 kills, 10.3 assists, 0.9 aces, 13.6 digs and 1.7 blocks per set. Wichita State is hitting .190 with 369 kills in 1,102 attempts and 160 errors.
• Taflinger and freshman outside hitter Sina Uluave were named to the Shocker Volleyball Classic Presented by Ashley HomeStore All-Tournament Team.
• Third-ranked Texas marked the highest-ranked opponent to ever visit Charles Koch Arena. The previous highest-ranked team to come to the arena was No. 6 Washington in 2004.
• Head Coach Chris Lamb is in his 20th season with the Shockers
• WSU returns two starters from last season in junior middle blocker Emma Wright and sophomore outside hitter Megan Taflinger. Junior libero Giorgia Civita also returns, but will miss the 2019 season due to injury.
• Wichita State welcomes 11 newcomers this season, including eight freshmen and three transfers.
• The Shockers are picked seventh in the American Athletic Conference preseason poll.
• Wichita State is scheduled to face six teams that are ranked in the AVCA Preseason Top-25 Poll, including four in the top-10 (No. 2 Nebraska, No. 4 Texas, No. 8 Penn State, No. 9 BYU, No. 18 Creighton, No. 23 Cal Poly).
• WSU led The American and ranked 18th in the country in overall attendance last season, averaging 2,177 fans over their 10 home matches. The Shockers have been ranked in the top-25 for attendance for 14 straight seasons.
• WSU has won four conference tournament titles (2004, 2013, 2015, 2016).
• The Shockers have won seven conference regular-season championships (2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2013, 2015, 2017).
• Giorgia Civita was named The American Libero of the Year last season. She was also voted first team all-conference and AVCA Honorable Mention All-Region.
 
Series History
The Shockers are 24-40 all-time against the three teams:
Creighton - 23-26
Wyoming - 0-1
Nebraska - 1-13
 
About Creighton
The Creighton University Bluejays enter the week at 5-3 overall and are ranked No. 15  in the latest AVCA poll after winning two of three matches in the Bluejay Invitational Sept. 13-14 in Omaha...Through eight matches, Creighton is led by redshirt freshman outside hitter Keeley Davis (83 kills, 2.68 kills/set, .184 attack pct., six aces, 24 digs, one block solo, 10 block assists), senior setter Madelyn Cole (325 assists, 10.48 assists/set, six aces, 92 digs, three block solos, 16 block assists), senior defensive specialist Brittany Witt (154 digs, 4.97 digs/set, 30 assists, five aces) and senior middle blocker Megan Ballenger (69 kills, 2.23 kills/set, .312 attack pct., two block solos, 23 block assists, 0.81 blocks/set)...Davis is the reigning BIG EAST Freshman of the Week...The Bluejays were picked to finish second behind Marquette in the BIG EAST preseason poll...Creighton is under the leadership of 17th season head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth.
 
About Wyoming
The University of Wyoming Cowgirls enter the week at 4-5 overall after dropping three matches in the South Dakota Classic Sept. 13-14 in Vermillion, S.D....Through nine contests, Wyoming is led by sophomore outside hitter KC McMahon (90 kills, 3.33 kills/set, .249 attack pct., nine block assists), junior setter Mackenzie Coates (288 assists, 8.73 assists/set, 65 digs, one block solo, 11 block assists), senior defensive specialist Madi Fields (26 assists, eight aces, 152 digs, 4.47 digs/set) and junior middle blocker Faith Waitsman (37 kills, three block solos, 23 block assists, 0.96 blocks/set)...The Cowgirls were picked second behind Colorado State in the Mountain West preseason poll...Wyoming is under the direction of seventh season head coach Chad Callihan.
 
About Nebraska
The University of Nebraska Cornhuskers enter the week at a perfect 7-0 and are ranked number one in the latest AVCA poll after winning a trio of matches in the Ameritas Players Challenge Sept. 13-14 in Lincoln...The Huskers are scheduled to face No. 2 Stanford Wednesday night in Lincoln before taking on the Shockers Saturday...Through seven matches, Nebraska is paced by junior outside hitter Lexi Sun (105 kills, 4.04 kills/set, .287 attack pct., seven aces, 58 digs, three block solos, 15 block assists), sophomore setter Nicklin Hames (259 assists, 9.96 assists/set, nine aces, 84 digs, one block solo, 11 block assists), freshman DS/libero Kenzie Knuckles (106 digs, 4.08 digs/set, 33 assists, three aces) and junior middle blocker Lauren Stivrins (56 kills, 2.15 kills/set, .311 attack pct., three aces, four block solos, 28 block assists)...The Huskers rank fourth in the nation in opponent hitting percentage, limiting opposing teams to just .138 hitting...Nebraska was picked to finish second behind Wisconsin in the Big Ten preseason poll...The Huskers are under the leadership of 20th season head coach John Cook.
 
Last Meeting vs. Creighton
No. 14 Creighton ended the Bluejay Invitational with a 3-1 win over Wichita State Sept. 9, 2018. The Bluejays won by scores of 23-25, 25-17, 25-16 and 25-23. Megan Taflinger led the Shockers with 12 kills and three service aces, while Kali Eaken had 18 assists and Giorgia Civita had 26 digs.
 
Only Meeting vs. Wyoming
The Shockers and Cowgirls have met just once in the all-time series, with Wyoming claiming a five-set win in 1999 in Norman, Okla.
 
Last Meeting vs. Nebraska
The Wichita State Volleyball team fell in three sets to No. 4 Nebraska by scores of 25-19, 25-19 and 25-14 in the second round of the NCAA tournament at the Bob Devaney Sports Center Dec. 5, 2015. The Shockers were led by Senior Katie Reilly who had 11 kills on 18 attempts for a hitting percentage of .556. Emily Hiebert also contributed with a team-high 32 assists.
 
New-Look
Wichita State returns just two starters in 2019 in junior middle blocker Emma Wright and sophomore outside hitter Megan Taflinger. WSU has 11 newcomers this season, including freshmen Skylar Goering (outside hitter), Kayce Litzau (setter), Nicole Anderson (outside hitter), Arianna Arjomand (libero/DS), Sina Uluave (outside hitter), Sophia Rohling (opposite), Shea Lauria (libero/DS) and Lily Liekweg (libero/DS), and transfers Lexi Hogan (outside hitter), McKayla Wuensch (setter) and Damadj Johnson (middle blocker).
 
International History
Junior libero Giorgia Civita returns to the team in 2019. Civita is from Milan, Italy and is just the seventh international player to play for the Shockers. Others include Kim Henry (1989-92) from Canada, Swee Ng (1992) from Malaysia, Marsha Van Cedar (1994-95) from Canada, Tomoko Matsuda (1996) from Japan, Lucia Zhanje (2000) from Zimbabwe and Shimen Fayad (2014-15) from Canada. One other international player was on the roster in 1992, but never played in a match (Tamie Bearup, Italy).
 
Lamb Returns for 20th Season
Head coach Chris Lamb, five-time conference Coach of the Year and 2017 National Coach of the Year, returns for his 20th season after guiding the Shockers to at least 20 wins in 15 of the last 16 seasons. In 2011, he became the winningest coach in Shocker volleyball history and in 2017 he won his 400th career match.
 
Practice Schedule
(*schedule subject to change)
The Shockers will practice in the Aetna Multi-Purpose Center Tuesday-Thursday from 1:30-4:30 p.m. On the day before a home match, the team will practice on Devlin Court.
 
The Chris Lamb Radio Show
(*schedule subject to change)
The Chris Lamb Radio Show will take place Monday's throughout the season live from AJ's Sports Grill at The Alley in Wichita. The show will air on 97.5 FM and 1240 AM KFH radio. Mike Kennedy will host the show. A full show schedule is available at GoShockers.com.
 
2018 Review
Wichita State advanced to the postseason for the fourth consecutive season, qualifying for the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC). WSU finished the 2018 season with a 14-18 overall record and went 8-10 in American Athletic Conference play. The Shockers played the fourth-toughest schedule in all of NCAA Division I volleyball, including five matches against AVCA Top-25 opponents. Sophomore libero Giorgia Civita was voted American Libero of the Year, first team all-conference and AVCA Honorable Mention All-Region. A native of Milan, Italy, Civita rewrote the Wichita State volleyball record books in 2018, compiling single-season records for both digs (728) and digs per set (5.78).
 
On the Horizon
Wichita State opens American Athletic Conference play with a road contest at Tulsa Friday, Sept. 27, at 7 p.m. before returning home to Charles Koch Arena for a conference tilt against Cincinnati Sunday, Sept. 29, at 1 p.m.